On April 26, 2020, the Schiller Institute NYC Chorus participated in the Culture Panel at the International Conference of the Schiller Institute. Both Diane Sare and John Sigerson, co-directors of the Schiller Institute NYC Chorus, participated in the panel.

Diane Sare, Founder of the Schiller Institute NYC Chorus, spoke on the choral principle in politics, and co-Director John Sigerson, spoke on Poetry and Music. Distinguished guests included the keynote speaker, Helga Zepp-LaRouche, founder of the Schiller Institute, speaking from Germany on the Need for a Classical Renaissance today; Dr. Teng Jimeng from Beijing speaking on the congruence of Confuscian culture with western thought, who stayed late into the night - Beijing time - through the entire Q & A; the venerable Dr. Eugene Simpson, Founding Curator of the Hall Johnson Collection; Professor Willis Patterson, whose talk on the Classical Principle in Folk Music was in a certain way at the core of the panel; and Gregory Hopkins of the Harlem Opera Theater. Great recordings of past performances and talks were also presented of Lyndon LaRouche and William Warfield whose recitation of "When Melinda Sings" by Paul Lawrence Dunbar captivated the audience. Enjoy the program!

Panel Moderators: Kesha Rogers and Dennis Speed

11:00-11:15 — Beethoven, “An die ferne Geliebte,” op. 98
John Sigerson, tenor, Margaret Greenspan, piano 

11:15 — Lyndon LaRouche
“I Have Insisted That Music Is Intelligible!” 

11:20 — Helga Zepp-LaRouche
Founder and Chairman, Schiller Institute 

11:40 — William Warfield
“A Poetic Musical Offering” 

11:45 — Willis Patterson
Bass-baritone, professor emeritus / Associate Dean of the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance
“The Presence of the Classical Principle in Folk Music” 

12:10 — John Sigerson
Music Director for the Schiller Institute, co-author of A Manual on the Rudiments of Tuning and Registration
“The Physical Power of Classical Poetry and Music” 

12:30 — Dr. Eugene Simpson
Professor emeritus of Voice and Choral Literature, Rowan University of New Jersey; Founding Curator of the Hall Johnson Collection
“Hall Johnson and the Dvorak Dream: From Spiritual to Art Song” 

1:00 — Diane Sare
Founder and co-director, Schiller Institute NYC Chorus
“On the Employment of Chorus in Politics” 

1:25 — Conference Greetings, Gregory Hopkins
Founder and Artistic Director, Harlem Opera Theater. 

1:30 — Teng Jimeng, PhD
Beijing Foreign Studies University

1:45 — Discussion and Q&A